Council of Astraeus
by Amethyst M
Summary: Sequel to Avalon's Tear. Merlin, Arthur, and the rest are trying to live their lives as normally as possible after the events of Avalon's Tear. However, a new threat rises as Morgana teams up with some ancient forces. AU modern/reincarnation fic. Rated T to be safe. Warning: Contains season 5 spoilers.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Merlin.

This is a sequel to Avalon's Tear. This takes place approximately 6 months after that story.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Merlin watched the evening news. The major story of the day was a volcano erupting somewhere in a remote Russian province, which would not normally be a news story except for the human interest piece. There had been sightings of a phoenix in the area over the centuries. Now, this would once have been regarded as mere superstition, but with the recent revelation of magic's existence, everyone was curious if any of the other myths were true. The general public still had no knowledge of the dragons.

He lived in Greenhaven, a small village that had been started by what remained of the druid community decades ago. It was in the UK. Up until recently, the regular folks had been completely unaware of the village's origins. It was only because Merlin had broken free from Nimueh's spell keeping him trapped for all of those centuries that they knew about magic. While Nimueh had been defeated, Morgana and Morgause had disappeared. More than likely, they were using magical methods to hide themselves.

In the meantime, he was keeping himself busy teaching at the school the druids had started up just a few months ago. Schools of magic were springing up all over the world now, though some had to resort to being hidden, due to new laws regulating the use of magic. The world governments had come to a consensus that magic should be regulated, but how, they could not agree. Therefore the laws around the world ranged from being Uther-inspired to the more standard variety, in which only harmful magic was banned unless used in self-defense.

Merlin, Arthur, Guinevere, the rest of the former round table knights, and some of the druids had been invited to Parliament to discuss what the laws should be, and the lawmakers had agreed to ban only harmful magic except in self-defense. That had been about four months ago. As a result of those discussions, formal magic schools had been legalized, so long as they also taught standard subjects.

Also, a universal travel database had been created, which magic users were expected to enter into where they were going and when if a foreign country was involved. This had come about since the world governments had realized it was going to be nearly impossible to keep track of people who didn't require an airplane to visit another continent. Of course, it depended upon honesty, and all magic users were required to carry a passport if they were in another country, but the druid council could punish anyone if violations occurred.

Since not all of the world's countries trusted the druids, several had taken it upon themselves to outlaw magic completely. The punishment for violating the law was life in prison or death, depending upon the country. Thankfully, most of the world had not gone that route. Most of the world remained quite sane.

Merlin's parents had been reborn, and his father was once again a Dragonlord, though with the help of the dragons' magical experiments. They had been brought together by the dragons and secretly lived in Greenhaven among the druids. Since the dragons had foreseen Nimueh's return, they had protected anyone having anything to do with Merlin in order to create a defense against her. Gaius, Leon, Percival, and Gwaine had been reincarnated and were brought together by the dragons.

Arthur and his parents had been found living in New York City, blissfully unaware of their connections to Merlin until Morgana and Morgause had stormed the New York City library, where Uther worked in his current incarnation. Guinevere and her family had been living on the other side of the US. They had all reunited as Nimueh, Morgana, and Morgause tried to take their revenge. Now though, they were back in their old lives, at least as much as they could be with the sudden fame.

* * *

Meanwhile, across the ocean, Guinevere was unpacking her things with the help of Arthur and her brother. Leon was also helping. He was Arthur's friend from college, and while he knew he had been a knight of Camelot, he did not remember anything. Gwen's parents were outside and talking to Arthur's parents. It was probably a good thing that her parents had no memory of Camelot considering what had happened to them. Uther, to his credit, was being polite. But it was still awkward politeness all around.

"So…what exactly did we do, back then?" her father asked.

"You were the blacksmith," Uther replied.

"Dad, you made Excalibur," said Guinevere. "You just didn't know what it was at the time."

"I did? But it's magical, isn't it?"

"Merlin got the dragon to breathe on it," she explained. "That's where the magic comes from."

"Oh."

"Come on, Leon," Arthur said.

"I really…ugh…think we should have…ugh…called Percival," said the former knight.

"All right, you two," said Gwen. "You can put those boxes in the living room." She gestured to a set of boxes inside the moving truck.

"Too bad Merlin isn't here," said Leon. "He could just magic all of this stuff for you."

"He's supposed to be here today."

There was a flash of green light outside. "Hello," said the warlock.

"Merlin!" Gwen exclaimed, running outside. "You made it."

The raven-haired man grinned. He appeared much younger than he was. Having been trapped in Nimueh's spell in the cave for over a thousand years, he had only recently broken free. It had been several months since then.

He was still getting used to the twenty-first century, even though he was a fast learner. The culture shock was finally starting to wear off. However, there were a lot of things he only had a basic concept of and hadn't had time to fully delve into the details, like computers.

"You remember my parents?" she asked, gesturing to them.

"Ah. Yes. Hello," he said.

Her mother nodded politely. Her father's jaw dropped.

"I don't bite," said Merlin, smiling.

"_Mer_lin, hurry up and magic this stuff already," Arthur ordered.

The warlock turned around. "Yes, your formerly royal clotpoleness."

"That's not even a proper word," he replied.

"It is now," the warlock replied, stepping into the apartment building.

Gwen's apartment was on the ground floor, so at least there were no stairs involved. The patio door had been left open to make it easier to bring in things from the truck. The parking lot was right outside.

Merlin's eyes turned golden. Suddenly, Arthur and Leon's box felt as light as a piece of paper. Leon stepped away as Arthur set it down.

Elyan turned around. "Hello, Merlin."

"Hey, Elyan!"

"I'm sorry; I don't remember anything from Camelot. My name's Ethan now."

"Do you want to remember it?"

He glanced around. "Yeah, I suppose it would be easier, wouldn't it?"

Merlin's eyes glowed as he cast the memory spell. It worked the same as it had for the others. They retained their present-day memories, but also those of their past lives.

As Elyan recalled his days as a knight, he gasped. "Morgana killed me in that tower."

"It's all right," Arthur said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You're here now."

"That I am," said Elyan, looking around. "It's so weird having two sets of memories in my head."

"You'll get used to it," Arthur responded.

"Leon," Merlin began, "Do you want to remember?"

The former knight looked from Elyan to Arthur and back to Merlin. "Sure. Why not?"

The spell only took a moment to cast, but for Leon it was like having another life flash before his eyes. He had survived Camlann to marry, have a son, and grow to old age. However, it had been odd without Arthur there. The land had finally been united and magic was allowed in.

No one at the time had known where Merlin was. They assumed he had been terribly upset after Arthur's death and that he could not bear to be in Camelot without the king. Now Merlin having been trapped in Nimueh's spell all these years made sense. The knights should have known that he would never willingly abandon his beloved Camelot.

Gwen poked her head into the room. "How's it going?"

"Fine," Arthur said. "Especially since Merlin's going to make all of these boxes weigh a lot less, so that everyone can take one. Right?"

Merlin nodded. As his eyes glowed, a bluish sheen sparkled over the boxes and then vanished. "You try one, Gwen," he said.

She picked up a large box that should have been way too heavy. "That worked out great. Come on, mum, dad, you can help now."

Even Arthur's parents helped, and that sped up the process.

* * *

Meanwhile, in London, the guards at the embassy opened the door to the ambassador from Japan. He was a middle-aged appearing man with a receding hairline. Mr. Sato wore a black Caraceni suit, a white shirt, and a red tie. He carried a Gucci briefcase. Nothing but the best for him would do.

As Mr. Sato entered, he noticed someone he had not seen before. A younger man was waiting for him. The younger man appeared to be of Japanese descent and wore a good quality navy suit from Marks & Spencer. It was nowhere nearly as expensive as his Italian suit, but for a young man who had not been in the workforce long, it was considered quite spendy.

"Good evening, Sato-san." The younger man bowed respectfully.

The older man raised an eyebrow. "Good evening. I do not believe we have met."

"We have not. My name is Haruto Tanaka. I am to be your new assistant."

The older man nodded. "Good. Come with me then. You can make yourself useful by doing some research for me."

"What sort of research?"

"I need information on a particular region of Russia, the Kamchatka Peninsula - geographic data as well as current population data."

The younger man nodded. "As you wish. Is there anything else?"

"No," said the ambassador. "Arigatou gozaimasu."

Mr. Sato entered his office and opened his briefcase. Inside it was a laptop computer. He took it out and set it up. Upon checking his email, he received a message with one word: Beware. The sender was encrypted.

The ambassador looked around just to be certain that he was alone. His eyes glowed golden, and the bits of information broke down with the applied magic. He waited patiently.

Though this world had its technology that thought to replace magic, it never fully could. Magic applied in the right way could destroy more than an atomic bomb. The fools with their guns and warheads could not comprehend that. Most of the world's military forces still did not employ magic users, and that would be to their disadvantage.

A bargain was being struck; a bargain that would unite some of the world's most ancient and darkest forces against the current powers. He knew that some magic users would try to undo them, especially Merlin. However, unbeknownst to Merlin, these particular forces were even more ancient than any he had previously encountered. The warlock would be caught unaware, and thus unable to defend his beloved Albion.

The e-mail had come from his contact in Russia. She was ancient beyond belief, having lived for over two thousand years. No one knew that she was still alive, and thus she was a wild card. Her power was immense. Even Merlin would find her difficult to defeat on her own, if not impossible. It wasn't just her, though. It was the rest of the Council of Astraeus, the name of those who disagreed with the main druid council.

They had split off from the core group and gone their separate ways, knowing that the other council would do nothing until they posed a direct threat. By that time, the Council of Astraeus would have gained strength and would easily be able to defeat the others. Merlin would be dealt with separately, since he was their strongest threat. Once defeated, the others would be easily cowed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Arthur, Gwen, their respective families, Leon, and Merlin had ordered pizza following the move. "So Gwen, what are you studying in college?" Ygraine asked.

"I'm pre-med, actually. I have one year left."

"Why, that's wonderful. Where do you want to go for med school?"

"I'd like to go to Cornell, actually. My aunt went there. She's a neurosurgeon."

"Annie, you're brilliant," Elyan said, using Gwen's current name out of habit. "You'll get there."

She smiled. "Thank you."

It was hard to believe, Gwen thought, that they were all together doing something relatively normal. Gwen's parents and Arthur's parents had not really known each other in the Camelot days, and there was a reason why Gwen had specifically requested Merlin not to cast the memory spell on her parents. One of his blacksmithing clients back in the day had been a sorcerer, unbeknownst to Gwen's father at the time. However, Uther had found out and arrested Tom for treason. Morgana had given him the key to escape from the prison cell, but the guards had killed him. So while Uther had technically not killed Gwen's father, there was bound to be bad blood between them if he remembered.

Her mother had died young in the Camelot years. She'd been a midwife and had contracted an illness from one of her patients, and that illness had led to what would now be called a bacterial infection. In those days, magic was the only thing that would cure it. Since magic had been outlawed, being severely ill for many people was essentially a death sentence. Now, of course, there was a treatment for it. Gwen was thankful that her parents were back.

* * *

An egg surrounded by lava sat precariously inside a volcano on a shelf of black rock. A crack appeared in the egg, followed by another crack. There was a moment of stillness except for the rumbles from the volcano. Then the egg exploded into fire and light. Golden wings spread out as the creature inside the egg stood on the rock. It looked around. As a plume of fire burst forth from the volcano, the phoenix hatchling rose into the ashen sky.

In Russia, a woman who appeared no older than 25 with long black hair and green eyes smiled as the ruby amulet around her neck glowed. She wore a black dress. She'd had that amulet for nearly two thousand years, and it had never failed. It alerted her, you see, whenever a phoenix was born. She was ancient, true, but she was hardly as ugly as the stories foretold. She could change her appearance at will, but she was a dragon. Her power was legendary.

She picked up a cell phone from her pocket and dialed the London number.

"Yes?" answered the man with a Japanese accent.

"It's time," she replied.

"Good," he replied.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kilgharrah was serving drinks to tourists when his cell phone beeped. He placed the drinks on the table, nodded pleasantly, and then headed to his office, where he answered the cell phone.

"It has happened," said a female voice on the other line. There was no need for explanation. Both knew what "it" was.

"I understand," said Kilgharrah. "I will tell him."

"Good. Be sure he understands the importance of this event and does not underestimate it."

"Yes," said Kilgharrah, and hung up the phone. Then he immediately dialed Merlin.

"Hello?" came the voice. In the background, the dragon could hear Arthur and Gwen chatting away.

"Ah, Merlin. There has been, shall we say, an event."

Merlin paused. The dragon could almost hear him thinking. "What sort of an event?"

"The sort that ordinary folks should not find out about on the telly," replied the dragon.

"Ah. We should not speak further on the phone," said Merlin.

"Agreed. Come here as soon as you can."

"I will," replied Merlin. He hung up the phone and glanced around at his friends, who were still eating pizza. "Sorry, everyone, but I have to go back home."

"Why the rush?" Gwen asked.

"Tricky situation, I think. Can't give out details right now. I'll be back, but I have to go to the Dragon's Roost."

Gwen nodded. "Be careful."

"As always," Merlin said, and then he vanished in a flash of green light.

The warlock appeared outside the Dragon's Roost. Tourists gaped at him. A few brought their phones up to take pictures, but Merlin shook his head and went inside. The place was packed, as was becoming the norm. Tourists from all around the world came here simply because this was Merlin's town, the current home of magic, or so the news media claimed. But the news media was wrong. Magic didn't exist in one location, it was everywhere. People just failed to see it because they didn't recognize it for what it was.

Merlin cast an "ignore me" spell and slowly worked his way through the crowd of visitors until he got to Kilgharrah's office.

"Come in," said the familiar voice on the inside.

Kilgharrah looked quite ordinary as a human. He had long gray hair, a mustache, and green eyes. He favored the colors green and brown in his clothing. Few knew that he was a dragon masquerading in human form.

"Hello, Merlin," said the dragon.

The warlock nodded and sat down. "Hello, Kilgharrah. What is it?"

"You are aware of the existence of other magical creatures, yes?"

"Yes. But what..."

"A phoenix has hatched," the dragon explained. "This is not a common occurrence. I have information that leads me to believe this will be used not for good, but for ill purposes."

Merlin gaped. "A phoenix."

"Yes," Kilgharrah replied. "You would think this bodes well, but it does not. There are those who wish to harness the magical power of the phoenix for evil."

"Who?"

"Others of my kind," the dragon responded. "There are those who do not agree with the draconic council."'

Merlin blinked. "Of course there must be politics with dragons, as there are with humans..."

"I am not speaking of mere politics, Merlin. I am speaking of those who wish to do the rest of my race harm. They are foolish and do not recognize the need to hide from humans."

"Oh?"

"You do realize that we must hide from humans. They do not know yet that there are those who can control us, but that could be revealed at some point. There are two children with the ability to control dragons, Merlin. Children who could be abducted and tortured and used in some scheme. I will not see that happen. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"Do what you can to ensure the phoenix does not fall into the wrong hands. For if it does, then I fear that Earth is doomed."

"I will," said Merlin. "I swear."

Kilgharrah nodded. "Good."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Meanwhile, Morgana gritted her teeth as she faked a polite smile. "Hello, welcome to Brown and Cooper. May I help you?"

The customer had entered the New York law firm run by her uncle Agravaine, who in this life was named Alistair Brown, a lawyer and a vegetarian. She was tall, thin, and had long black hair and green eyes. When she spoke, her accent was Russian. Morgana had been learning accents since being in New York. It was a strange thing, to be in one city and yet be surrounded by people from all around the world. The globe truly had shrunk.

"I think you can help me, Morgan le Fay," the woman said.

Morgana's eyes widened. Her disguise was good. She had given herself red hair and freckles, and had changed her height to be several inches taller. She wore a red dress with a black swirled print. It was a magical disguise (partially aided by hair coloring to make it less fatiguing to hold) that few could see through. This woman had great magical power, indeed. Morgana's eyes glowed golden as she cast a silencing spell around the two of them.

"Please, continue," she said.

"You do not care for the druidic council, correct?" the Russian woman inquired.

"Why do you ask?"

"I am part of what we call the Council of Astraeus. It is a secret magical organization consisting of magic users and dragons who do not agree with our representative councils. We have discovered a way which we can gain control over them."

"And what would that be?"

"Have you heard of the legend of the fire bird?"

Morgana nodded. "It was always said to be just a myth."

"As you of all people should know, there are many things that are said to be myths which have the ring of truth. The fire bird is one of those things. Its feathers and blood can be utilized in spells, the most powerful of which can be used in a rite to summon Aries."

"The God of War," Morgana gasped. "What makes you think he will help us? He is not to be trifled with."

"Yes. We believe Aries will work in our favor, since he values strife above all. The beings under his command can wipe out the druids, and Aries himself is strong enough to take out Merlin."

"You assume much. He is a deity, not a mortal like us. Who knows what his thoughts are? We cannot hope to control him," she protested. Surely summoning Aries in and of itself was folly. His wrath was legendary.

"Not normally, no," the Russian woman agreed. "However, there is a way that few know about, a magical device that is made up of three gems. They are known as the Gems of Time, Souls, and Annihilation. They are ancient. However, I know that one of them is here in New York City at the museum, another is in London's infamous tower, and the last gem lies within the pyramids of Egypt."

Morgana blinked. She had misgivings that Aries would be that easily controlled, but if the device worked..."Why have I not heard of this? You would think some arcane scholar would have written about such an object."

"This is a device that has been kept secret through the ages, lest it fall into the wrong hands. It is called the Sphere of Titans. Legend has it the Titans created it, ages ago, in case the Gods turned on them. The Gods allowed them to keep it, for they knew it could be used as a weapon against Hades if he managed to return to the world of mortals."

The Titans...well then, there was a possibility it might work. "All right," Morgana said. "I want to see Merlin pay for all he has done."

"Indeed," said the Russian woman. "I will get the gem from London, you will get the gem from the museum here, and both of us will need to go to Egypt."

"May I ask who you are?"

"Ah," said the woman, smiling. "I am currently going by the name Anastasia Sokolov. But you recognize the name Baba Yaga, yes?"

Morgana did her best to not appear as shocked as she was. This woman was a legend even among legends. "I am honored to meet you."

"Good," said the Russian. "There have been many falsehoods said about me. I do not live in a chicken hut, for one thing. I am not ugly, for another thing. I chose the ugly face a long time ago to scare off some adventurers. This is not my true appearance, but I have not aged in nearly two thousand years."

The woman dropped her shields, letting Morgana get a taste of her true, raw power. The British woman gasped as she felt waves of magic crashing into her. There was no doubt that the Russian was telling the truth about who she was.

"I believe you," Morgana said, awestruck by Baba Yaga's power. "I will retrieve the gem from the New York museum. What does it look like?"

"It is said to be dark blue and opaque with hints of violet. You will find it in the Mideast exhibit. Be cautious, as there is new technology now which will alert guards to your presence immediately. No doubt it will be highly guarded. You should familiarize yourself with the type of security devices the museum uses and plan magical defenses accordingly."

She nodded. "I understand."

"Excellent," Baba Yaga replied. "I will keep in touch." She vanished. There was no hint of any kind of light, just a slight pop from the air displacement. Whatever teleportation spell she used, it was older than the ones currently in use by the druids and Merlin.

Morgana realized that she would have to talk with her uncle. He remembered Camelot, which was why he hired her to be the receptionist, but beyond that he did not really have a reason to care about the magical problems. He was an American citizen with no magical talent to speak of, and though he felt loyalty to her again, he was not hard-pressed to go after Merlin or Arthur's family. He had a successful career as a lawyer, and a nice home (which Morgana was currently staying in), and did not want to jeopardize that beyond hiring her. So, while he was willing to stick his neck out partly, he was not willing to stick it out all the way.

"Hello, Mary," he said. They had agreed that she would use her fake name while working as a receptionist to avoid any questions if someone were to accidentally overhear them.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Brown. The report is ready for the Waterhouse Company."

"Excellent."

She had picked up computer basics like word processing fairly quickly, but it was easy enough to use magic to get things done and fake typing for any onlookers at the same time. They would just think that she was an extremely fast typist.

"What about the Whitfield files?"

"They are nearly complete. I need to call Mr. Whitfield's assistant back and get some more information from her."

He nodded. "You are adjusting remarkably fast."

"I should think so. Merlin doesn't even use a computer beyond his iPhone. The Daily Mail interviewed him last week." Morgana had a sense of pride that she could at least do this one thing better than her warlock counterpart.

"Well, he probably doesn't have a reason to yet. Cell phones can do a lot these days. You should consider getting a driver's license. It might come in handy."

"In this city? As they say," and she faked a New York accent, "fuggidaboutit."

He chuckled. "Would you like a tea latte? I'm going to the coffee shop and I can bring you back something."

"Yes, please. Skim milk, of course."

"Of course."

The tea latte was Morgana's newest and favorite modern food creation. The only problem with them was that one couldn't have too many of them too often. As her uncle left, Morgana wondered just how her heist at the museum was going to go. She remembered her lesson from Jimmy at the hotel and went to Google to search.

* * *

The next day, Arthur sat down in his English Literature class. He was sitting near the back and trying to keep a low profile. Then an all-too-familiar person entered the room. Arthur paled as the young man sat next to him, completely oblivious.

"Hello," said Mordred.

Arthur turned away and took out his cell phone. _Merlin,_ he typed.

_What?_ Merlin typed back.

_You'll never believe who's in my English class._

_Who?_

_Mordred._

There was a long pause as Merlin digested this. Then, he typed back, _Does he know?_

_No, _Arthur replied.

The instructor walked up to the head of the classroom and began the lecture. It was about Shakespeare. Arthur's mind drifted as she droned on about the Twelfth Night. In fact, his mind drifted back to those last days in Camelot, in which he had sentenced Mordred's girlfriend to die for treason. He wished he had been given a better choice, but in that time and place, there really was none. Finally, after what seemed like forever, the class was over. Arthur picked up his laptop and backpack. Mordred did the same.

"So, why did you look like you've seen a ghost?" Mordred asked as they walked through the door.

Arthur shrugged in response.

"Was I someone back then?"

"Sorry, my memories are really spotty when it comes to that stuff," Arthur lied. "It was a past life. A lot of it is hazy."

"Yeah, but you do remember some of it, right?" Mordred pressed him.

"Little bits, here and there. Merlin helped." The best lies had a hint of truth in them.

"I was someone important, wasn't I?"

Arthur ignored him and tried to lose himself in the crowd of students in the hallway.

"Hey," the dark-haired young man said, putting his hand on his shoulder. "I have a right to know who I was."

There was a long pause as the blond weighed the decision to tell him. "You were Mordred," Arthur replied finally.

The young man's eyes widened. "Oh," he said, as the former king of Camelot turned and left.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

It was about five-thirty in the evening when Morgana got in line at the museum. Having done her homework, she realized that going in with the general public was the easiest way to get in. She had donned another magical disguise that had, this time, given her long blonde hair. She wore jeans, a navy hooded sweatshirt, and sneakers since she did not want to stand out. Since there was no admission cost, she just entered along with everyone else.

The collection that her gem was going to be in was in the new Mideast exhibit. It was quite popular since it included some artifacts from Egypt. Upon walking through the exhibit, Morgana noticed that the Gem of Souls was in a bronze cat statue from Egypt. The gem had been inserted into the cat's eye.

As the time grew closer to six, Morgana found a burgundy curtain to hide behind. She cast a "don't notice me" spell, used telekinesis to move the curtain just a bit, and slipped behind it. The guards on patrol passed her and continued on their way. She waited calmly. Soon the lights dimmed and the museum fell silent.

Knowing that there were motion sensors in the collection area, Morgana concentrated on the entire room. This would take a great deal of magical power, and a less-powerful magic user would not be able to do it.

"Ástyntan," she whispered.

The witch felt the magic flow out and around her. Cautiously, she stepped out from behind the curtain and into the room. No alarms went off. There were no guards inconveniently passing by. Slowly, she took another step. Just to make sure, she reached out towards one of the other pieces on display. The spell had worked. Knowing that she had at least a few minutes, Morgana approached the bronze cat statue.

"Ofádón," she said softly.

The dark blue gem rotated in the statue's eye socket. Morgana watched while the jewel untwisted itself and hovered in the air. She held out her hand and concentrated as the gem slowly floated towards her. It landed nicely into her palm. She stuck it in her pocket and then quickly looked in the hallway. There were no guards yet.

Morgana looked down at her feet, concentrated, and said, "Forswigian." This was a silent move spell that she had used many a time in Camelot. Then she walked quickly down the dimly lit corridor until she came to a fire exit. Now she heard footsteps from an approaching guard. He was not, however, alert to her presence. She leaned flat against the wall and cast the ignore-me spell again. She held her breath as the guard walked right on by.

Breathing a sigh of relief once he was out of earshot, she faced the fire exit. This one was alarmed as well. Since it had worked on the other alarms, she said "Ástyntan." She felt the magic again, knowing that it had worked. She released the door, and once again, there were no alarms. She walked out into the night, breathing a sigh of relief as the door closed.

The next morning, the security tape of Morgana in the blonde disguise made the front page of the Telegraph as the inattentive guards were lampooned in the headline. That particular disguise was now unusable, but it had been effective while it lasted.

* * *

Meanwhile, in London, Baba Yaga walked out of the London museum along with the other visitors, having spent all night there with a shape-shifting spell that had turned her into a mouse temporarily. None of the guards had noticed. In her pocket was a purple gem with flecks of gold. It had been the top of a scepter attached to one of the statues. Now the Gem of Time was hers.

She frowned when she saw the headline of one of the newspapers: New York Museum Robbed. Morgana had been clumsy, but at least she had used a disguise. However, her ineptness may have alerted Merlin. He was not someone who Baba Yaga wished to deal with until she had all three gems and the power to summon Aries. Her magic was powerful, but the warlock's was legendary.

Her cell phone rang. She recognized the number at the embassy in London and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Do you have success?" asked the Japanese man.

"We have two out of the three," she replied, intentionally being vague as you never knew who was listening these days. "The third will be more difficult to obtain, but I am sure we will succeed."

"Good," Mr. Sato replied. "The plan has been set in motion. It should not be much longer. I already have associates going after the red bird. She is young and will be trusting."

"Excellent," the Russian woman replied. "What about the falcon?"

"Ah. I already have made arrangements for him. Do not worry."

"Good," she said.

Smiling, she put the phone back in her pocket. Things were looking up. Now all they had to do was go to Egypt and steal a gem from a hidden pyramid. What could go wrong?

Morgana looked down as her cell phone beeped. It was the Russian witch. "I will leave tomorrow for E," the text message said. "Meet me in two day's time." Another e-mail beeped which was an e-mail alert. Checking it, she saw a hotel address in Cairo. Well, she had some PTO coming. The law firm offered good benefits and she had been there for six months. She would just have to have a talk with her former uncle.

She went online to check out Cairo. The teleportation spell required one to be able to visualize the destination. At the same time, a news alert flashed across the computer screen about the volcano. All of the areas surrounding it were being evacuated. Modern technology was truly amazing. In ancient times, people would have had to rely upon magic to tell if the volcano was about to erupt. But clearly, modern society had been getting along without magic for quite some time.

There were many photographs of Cairo online, including the hotel. It was not hard at all to find them. The main problem was going to be avoiding attracting attention when she teleported, but Morgana had a plan for that.

* * *

The phoenix landed in a wooded area that was unpopulated by humans. Her name was Endellion. When her mother laid the egg, she did a magical naming ritual so that the baby would know her name at birth. The mother had to die for the egg to be viable. It was part of the magic.

With a flash of golden light, she transformed into a young human woman with long red hair, wearing a red dress that would have been more appropriate centuries ago, and sandals. The nearest populated area was a good day's walk away. She began her journey, knowing instinctively that the humans would fear her in her natural state, but would accept her as one of their own. She wished that she could fly, but in the past, human archers had tried to shoot her mother down. So she knew not to even attempt flying to a populated area.

Phoenixes, you see, had a genetic memory passed down from the previous generation to the next. There were so few left that a genetic memory had become necessary for survival. However, one thing she did not have was knowledge of the current time. It had been so many centuries since her mother had lived. Her mother had disguised herself as a human woman as well, and had married a Russian prince ages ago. That was in the time of legends, when dragons still flew in the skies above. Now of course, there were likely few, if any, dragons left.

This was going to be a very long walk.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 **

Morgana stood in line at the airport nervously. She had bought the plane ticket with a stolen credit card, of course. It was her first trip on a modern airplane. There were too many regulations. She had learned, after doing some research online, that there were many things that would have to go into her checked luggage. The modern terrorists had changed all the rules. She carried a book to read and her purse. Nothing else. The book was a romance novel she had bought at the airport book store. It was not the kind of thing she would have read in the old days, but she had not read many modern books yet, so she decided to give it a go and see if things had changed.

"Put the purse on the conveyor belt, Ma'am," the security agent said.

She complied. Causing a scene here would be bad. While she could take out the security team with magic, it would attract unwanted attention from Merlin, and that was the last thing she wanted. She was in magical disguise, but Merlin would probably figure out that it was her. He wasn't dumb.

"Thank you," said the security agent. "Please step forward."

She walked ahead. No alarms went off. That was a good thing. She picked up her purse and continued on her way.

The plane was 20 minutes late. Morgana sighed as she sat down and opened up her book to read. It was not long before they started to board. But, of course, the lines were long. She found herself seated next to a young mother and a little girl, who was well-enough behaved. Nervously, Morgana tapped her fingernails on the chair's armrest, to the point where one of her fingernails chipped. She sighed, knowing that she couldn't use a simple spell to fix it right now. It would have to wait.

"Have you ever flown before?" the woman asked. She was American, from her accent, but probably from the Midwest and not New York.

"No," answered Morgana honestly. "This is my first time."

The woman nodded. "Hers too. You'll get used to it. We're going to visit her father. He's a contractor for the government. He does computer stuff. I don't understand half of what he does, to tell you the truth. But he's got another six months in Cairo, so we're making the best of it."

Morgana looked a bit surprised. "Is that common nowadays?"

"What?"

"Families being separated."

"Well, it doesn't happen to every family, but it depends on a person's line of work."

"I see," Morgana replied.

"Are you one of them?"

"Sorry?"

"Those people who came here from the past that the news media keeps going on and on about. You do have a British accent, so I wondered."

Morgana blinked. The woman was more astute than most of the people she had met so far. Was it so wrong to want a friend who hadn't been part of those days, who didn't believe she was evil? But she couldn't trust this woman with everything, obviously. Still, having a friend whose husband worked for the government might come in handy.

"Yes," she replied. "I was a servant in the castle. Nobody ever mentions us in the stories, you know. They always go on about Merlin and Arthur," Morgana lied. "As usual, those two get all of the attention and the rest of us just get ignored."

"Oh," said the woman, looking a bit astonished. "I'm Sally."

"Mary."

"Nice to meet you, Mary. Have you been having a hard time adjusting?"

"Well, it hasn't been all that smooth. But I have an office job."

"Oh? Doing what?"

"Answering phones, mostly." With pride, she added, "And I can use a computer now. I heard Merlin still doesn't have one."

Sally nodded. "They said in the paper that he just has a cell phone. But he's teaching now, so I expect he'll have to learn how to use one eventually. Everyone uses computers now. They make life so much easier...when they work properly."

The plane took off. Morgana glanced down. She would be happy once they were back on solid ground.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Russia, Endellion had reached the town. It was not anywhere near Moscow in size. In fact, it was really more of a village. There were a few motorized cars in sight, but they appeared old and rusty. Since it was twilight now, there were some people about, but most of them were in their homes. The streetlights had come on. That was something new; her mother did not remember these seemingly magical lights.

A bored police officer on patrol noticed her. "Is there something I can help you with, Ma'am?"

"Ah, yes. Can you tell me where is the inn?"

"The...?"

"Where travelers go to sleep?"

"Oh." The police officer's eyes narrowed as he looked her up and down. "Are you all right, Ma'am?"

"I am fine, thank you. I am in need of food and shelter."

"Uh...right. Well, there is only one hotel in our little town. It's that way. They fixed up an old castle; it's a bed and breakfast now for the tourists. Are you a tourist? You sound like you're from England."

"Yes, yes," she replied. "A...tour-ist," she said the word haltingly. It had not been around in her mother's day.

"Good. Well, off you go. Or do you need an escort?"

"I am quite capable of taking care of myself, I assure you."

"Riiight. I think I'll go with you."

She held out her hand, and her eyes turned red. In her palm danced a tiny flame. "I do not need your assistance, kind sir, but thank you for asking."

The police officer backed away. "I don't want any trouble from you witches. We have enough of our own troubles with normal folks."

She smiled charmingly, a trick which she remembered from her mother. "There will be no trouble from me." The flame in her hand disappeared.

With that, she went on her way to the hotel, leaving a flustered police officer behind.

* * *

Mordred sighed as he sat down in the library with a copy of the Once and Future King. His current name was Matthew. However, he'd been trying the other name in his head ever since John...Arthur...had told him. It was common knowledge since all of the magical occurrences that Mordred had killed Arthur. Everyone knew that. What they didn't seem to know was why, and that was what he intended to find out. After all, a person had to have a good reason to commit murder, he figured.

Maybe it hadn't been murder at all. Maybe it was really self-defense, and the self-proclaimed history experts had gotten it all wrong. Mordred stared at the book. Of course, if they had gotten it wrong, then why was he looking in a book? What he really need to do was talk to someone who had been there and who had a balanced perspective, which meant someone other than Arthur, Merlin, Gwen, or the knights.

Morgana...now she would be able to tell him. But wasn't she evil? History had certainly made her out to be, and her actions since being brought back from the dead had not been altruistic. What about the other sorceress, Morgause? History had not recorded very much of her. All she was known for, really, was being a sorceress and the half-sister of Morgana. So, again, he had not much to draw on except for her current actions, which were not good. Also, he had no idea where to find her. If only he had magic in this lifetime.

Magic had not only come back in full swing, it was dancing around the globe and laughing in the face of anyone who tried to stop it. Mordred was willing to bet that the magical community was keeping some things a secret. In this age of instant media, anything that got out would be around the world in less than a minute in Franklin Gothic Heavy font, size 36 headlines.

He thought that there had to be magical creatures other than the dryads, which all the newspapers had picked up on after the battle fought on Arthur's father's lawn. Some of the dryads who had been hiding in plain sight came forward and admitted to their heritage. The lawmakers had rushed to give them federally protected status in the U.S., but some other countries were playing the wait-and-see game.

He put the book down. There had to be a way to know if he had magic in this life. Mordred picked up his cell phone and did a Google search. Since the knowledge of magic's existence had come out, countless Internet sites had sprung up overnight dedicated to the studying of real magic and the old language. Merlin himself had started such a site with the help of some of the former knights who had computer skills. It was a blog, really. He was making video posts with his cell phone since he didn't have a computer.

Mordred opened up the site, and sure enough, there was the warlock. The video played back for him. He put earbuds in since he was in the school library. "Wes hāl. That means hello in the old language. It was called the old language even when I was in Camelot. It has been about 1400 years, give or take a few. I was imprisoned in a magic cave and asleep for most of them, so I missed a good part of history. Luckily, I have a speed-reading spell or two up my sleeve."

The warlock grinned and continued. "Now you are probably wondering what happened to magic in all this time. Well, it didn't sleep with me. It is still here, and people do still practice it, but they have done so in secret. You see, real magic has been a very well-kept secret all this time. But now I am back, and I am going to show you how it is done. You at home are probably wondering if your ancestors may have had magic ability but kept it quiet. There are ways to tell, but unless someone is very powerful, it will not be obvious."

Merlin continued, "This is a very easy spell. We teach our youngest students this at our school of magic in England. So here is how you can tell if you have the ability to practice magic. Hold out your hand. It doesn't matter which one. Picture a ball of white light in your hand. Now say Leoht." A glowing ball of light appeared, floating above Merlin's hand.

Mordred paused the video. He concentrated and said, "_Leoht_."

There was a moment in which he doubted that anything would happen, but then a glowing ball of light appeared in his hand. He looked at it for a few seconds and then grinned. Taking the cell phone and ear buds off, he laughed. A few other students stared at him.

"I have magic," he said with a wide grin, showing off the ball of light.

The other students in the library gaped at him.

Mordred laughed again. He was going to find out more about his past, whether Arthur wanted him to know or not.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

It was about 8:00 at night. Merlin was in his makeshift basement office at home, grading a stack of papers on an old wooden table, when the electric ceiling light flickered and then went out. _"Leoht," _he said, causing a glowing ball of white light to appear. He went up the stairs, with the ball of light floating behind him. The door opened with a creak.

"Is everyone all right?"

"It's just a blackout," Hunith said from the living room. "Everything will be fine." She had lit several candles and cast a light spell. In this lifetime, she had magic, though nowhere near as powerful as his. Her ball of light was a soft yellow.

"Do blackouts happen often?" Merlin asked.

"No. But they're not usually serious, either. The power gets restored pretty fast most of the time."

He nodded and was about to go back downstairs, when he heard the sound of glass breaking. It was nearby. Hunith and Merlin exchanged glances in the dim light.

"Stay inside, Mum. I'll go and check it out."

If anyone was foolish enough to harm one of the neighbors, they would pay for their folly.

Merlin extinguished the ball of light behind him and stepped out of the house cautiously. Looking around, he saw no one in the shadows. Then suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his side. Looking down, he saw a small dart of some kind sticking out of his shirt. A spell was on the tip of his tongue, but the words would not form.

_Fools, _he thought. Apparently they had forgotten the part about him being a warlock. He just needed a target. But whatever poison had been on the dart acted quickly, and he fell on the front steps, unconscious.

* * *

As the plane touched down in Egypt, Morgana smiled at the passenger next to her. "It was nice to meet you," she said.

The woman gave her a business card. "Same here. You can call or e-mail me."

Morgana took it and nodded. She definitely had to get some made up for her fake identity. "Thank you. I do not have any myself to give you."

"Oh, don't worry about it." The woman smiled and took her daughter's hand. "Come along, Becky."

Mother and daughter walked off. Morgana proceeded to hunt for a taxi.

* * *

The next morning, Arthur's phone rang while he was still eating breakfast. "Hello?"

It was, unexpectedly, Hunith. "Good morning, Ar...John." She corrected herself. "I wouldn't be calling at this hour normally. I'm sure it's quite early in New York."

"You may call me Arthur if you like, and it's 6:15 in the morning," he replied. "Is something wrong?"

"Yes. Merlin's gone missing."

"What?" Arthur nearly dropped his spoon. "How is that even possible?"

"There was a blackout last night. It lasted for about an hour. Merlin went outside because we had both heard some glass break, and we were concerned for the neighbors. Now everyone in town knows where we live, so someone would have to be quite foolish to break into one of the neighbors' homes. But Merlin had to go and see if everything was all right, and he never came back inside. That's not like him."

"No, it isn't," Arthur agreed. "Let me call Percival. He's a police officer now, so he should be able to help. I can't leave right now; I'm in the middle of classes."

"All right," Hunith said.

Arthur hung up and dialed Percival's number. The former knight was now named Peter, and was a cop in the UK. Hopefully, he could do something to help find Merlin.

"Hello?" Percival answered.

Arthur filled him in on everything. When he finished, there was a moment of stunned silence.

"Gwaine and I will find him. How much do you want to bet it's Morgana?"

"She has to be involved somehow," the former king said. "When you find Merlin, I'm sure he'll be able to deal with her."

"Agreed," Percival replied. "I'll keep you updated."

* * *

It was cold, damp, and dark. Merlin awoke to find himself in a cage. The cage appeared to be made of rather ordinary steel. He looked around to find someone tall and well built, probably male, wearing a black robe with a hood. Golden eyes peered out of the hood. The man carried an old, gnarled staff. There was a dark stone of some sort on top of the staff. Merlin could not tell what it was from a distance.

"I wish we had met under better circumstances, but my employer insisted on the cage," said the mysterious sorcerer. He spoke English with no discernible accent.

Merlin tried to reply, but his words were slurred.

"Ah," said the sorcerer. "That would be the curare. It's just beginning to wear off; I had to use a pretty serious healing spell to keep you alive. My master did not use the correct dosage."

The warlock sighed and slumped against the cage. As his head hit the metal bar, a shimmer of light ran across the cage wall.

"It's enchanted," the sorcerer explained. "We know what you're capable of, so don't even try to escape. If you try to use magic against it, or to teleport out, you will not find the effects pleasant. We only need you out of the way temporarily. Then it won't matter. In fact, not much will matter at that point."

Merlin looked at him quizzically, wanting answers, but the curare had made him unintelligible. He tried sending a telepathic query. _:Who is your master?: _Immediately, he felt a sharp pain in his skull and winced. There was no getting through that barrier, at least for now.

"You will find a bucket of water in the far left corner. We need you alive."

The warlock looked at him questioningly.

"Do not underestimate the value of your information. We want it, and we will do whatever it takes to get it." Then the sorcerer turned around.

Merlin heard a lock slide soon after the door closed. He sat down on the cage floor and sighed. At least, he was famous enough now that his disappearance would cause a stir. His mother would phone Arthur or Kilgarrah. He just hoped it wouldn't be too late.

* * *

Endellion was asleep in her bedroom in the hotel, when she had a dream. A falcon soared through the sky, followed by a dragon. Suddenly an arrow aimed at the falcon, piercing its wing. The falcon fell to the earth, screeching. The dragon dove after it, but the dragon would not be fast enough to catch it. As the dream ended, Endellion sat up with sweat pouring down her forehead. What did it mean? Surely there were no more dragons left after all these years.

She did not know, but she knew that the falcon was good. Her gift of foresight, along with the past life memories, had taught her that much. Phoenix blood was saturated with magic. Endellion knew only one thing: she had to stop the falcon from falling. But who was the falcon, and was it real, or a symbol for something else? That, she did not know.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

It was about 7:00 in Egypt. Morgana was seated at the bar in her hotel, drinking a chardonnay, as Baba Yaga approached.

"Good evening," said the Russian woman. "I am glad to see that you made it."

Morgana nodded. "Is there someplace where we can talk?"

"Yes. Please come with me." The Russian woman led her to a small but nicely-furnished conference room. "I would like to see the gem."

She took it out of her purse. It had been disguised with a spell to fool the scanners, and appeared as a small hand mirror. Morgana cast the counter-spell. The air shimmered and the mirror turned into a small dark blue jewel, otherwise known as the Gem of Souls.

"Excellent," Baba Yaga said. She held up the Gem of Time. It was purple with gold flecks. "Now we must find the Gem of Annihilation. It is hidden below the pyramids in a secret cave. However, the path will not be easy. There are most likely booby-traps and spells to prevent anyone from finding it."

Morgana smiled. "Good thing we are not just anyone, then."

"Indeed," the Russian witch replied. "We have a driver who will meet us in an hour outside."

Morgana nodded. She was, at the moment, wearing the same modest black business suit and high heels that she had been wearing on the plane. She had packed a pair of jeans, a couple of cheap T-shirts that she did not care what happened to, and some boots. She'd been in caves before and was prepared for the messy business.

* * *

Merlin awoke in the cage. He must have fallen asleep at some point. It was very dimly lit. There were candles in sconces on the wall.

"Leoht," he whispered.

The cage itself shimmered red, preventing even the simple light spell from working. He wondered if any magic was possible. Merlin concentrated on the non-verbal version of the spell, and a small, glowing orb shimmered into view. He smiled. Well, that was something. Apparently, his captors had forgotten that he was a warlock and not a sorcerer.

He concentrated on the bucket of water to try and bring it closer. He still found it difficult to move. Though his jailor had cured him from the curare's poison to save his life, it had not entirely healed him. The bucket levitated a short way and then the cage shimmered red again. The bucket sank back onto the ground. Merlin sighed. More powerful spells were not an option.

How was he going to escape? He hoped that Arthur had indeed called for help.

* * *

Meanwhile, Gwaine was working on the underbelly of a taxi. It was red and white and had "Camelot Cabs" printed on the side. He had changed jobs and was working for the owner of the taxi business who had helped them get to Camlann. His previous boss had been a jerk, anyway. This one didn't pay all that much, but there was now a market demand for anything by anyone who had lived in Camelot, so he was writing one in the hopes of getting rich.

He heard a car door shut loudly, even over the U2 music that was playing on the radio. "Gwaine?" a familiar voice asked.

"Down here, Perc," he shouted, crawling out from under the cab as Percival walked into the garage. "What brings you out this way?"

"Merlin," the tall, muscular man replied. He was dressed in his police officer's uniform, complete with a hat. "I got a call from Arthur earlier and figured you'd want to be in on the search."

"Search?"

"Yeah. Apparently Merlin's been abducted. If someone can get the jump on him, you know magic is involved, which probably means Morgana."

Gwaine sighed. "Not her again. Why couldn't she have stayed in the afterlife, where she belongs?"

Percival shrugged. "You've got me."

"All right. Let me go talk to Bill. I'm sure he won't mind me taking a day or two off to help."

In the back office, an older man was bent over a laptop, typing. "Ah, Jack..." he said, using Gwaine's modern name, and looked up as Percival followed. "What's happened?"

"Merlin's gone missing, which is not a good thing," Gwaine replied.

"Morgana's probably involved," Percival added. "I'd like to borrow him for a couple of days for the investigation, if you don't mind."

"I take it that's not standard police protocol."

"Not really," the former knight admitted, "but we worked together for years, and we do know Merlin and Morgana. I'd rather have Gwaine on my side then someone who wasn't there and doesn't know what she's capable of. He'll have to be considered an expert consultant."

Bill nodded. "As long as it's only for two days. I do really need him here – he gets a lot more done than the kid I used to have."

"I'll make sure he comes back on schedule," Percival promised.

* * *

In Egypt, the van had taken Morgana and Baba Yaga to an unlikely place – a camel hiring service on the outskirts of the city. The camel riding was clearly meant for tourists.

"We will need to take camels to where we're going," the Russian witch explained. "The officials do not allow vehicles there. We would attract too much attention otherwise."

Morgana nodded. She was not keen on the idea of riding a camel, as they were notoriously bad-tempered beasts. She had changed into jeans and a black T-shirt in her hotel room. She also wore black leather boots and a backpack containing food and water. It was evening, so the temperature had cooled off to about 13 degrees Celsius. It had been 21 degrees Celsius earlier in the afternoon.

They got out of the van. The Russian woman spoke to the owner of the camel service. He ducked back into a tent. A few minutes later, a teenage boy approached them, leading two camels. Both had colorful Arabian saddles.

"Do you need a guide?" the boy asked in softly accented English.

"No," Baba Yaga replied.

"I work cheap. 5 pounds to Giza plateau."

"We know where we're going."

Morgana climbed onto her camel while the boy held it.

"Careful," he said. "They like to spit."

She nodded.

Soon, they were on their way. Baba Yaga led the journey. Morgana could see the pyramids from the road – they were quite large.

"We are headed not to one of the pyramids," the Russian woman explained, "but to a strange tomb of birds."

"Birds?" Morgana asked.

"Yes. The ancient Egyptians worshipped a god with the head of an Ibis. His name was Thoth. He was very interested in magic, science, philosophy, and writing. He was either a messenger or the scribe of the Egyptian gods."

"Sounds a lot like Hermes," she said.

"Indeed. Hermes was his counterpart," Baba Yaga responded as the camels traipsed on through the sand. "In any case, it is believed that there is a library hidden deep within these ancient catacombs, but no one has ever found it. Those with magical talent have seen it in visions. It is also said said within the library, there is a secret chamber filled with treasures. The Gem of Annihilation is supposed to be inside the treasure chamber."

Morgana nodded. "Then that is where we must go."

The journey was not all that long in the grand scheme of things, but it seemed quite slow. The women passed tourists who were still gaping at the pyramids and taking photographs. Finally they arrived at the Tomb of the Birds. There was a huge steel gate set in concrete over the front of it. No one was in sight, probably because no one was expected.

Baba Yaga climbed off her camel. Morgana did the same. The Russian witch's eyes glowed as she cast a spell to make the animals stay put. Then she cast another spell, and a spring of water appeared in the sand for them to drink.

"_Topspringe,_" Morgana said. The heavy steel gate swung open, beckoning them inside the dark tomb.

The rancid stench of bat guano was the first thing she noticed as they stepped into the entryway.

"_Þrosm tohweorfe," _she said between coughs. The pungent odor dissipated, thankfully. And then she muttered "_leoht_," since the tomb was very dark.

The glowing orb of white light revealed bat droppings everywhere. It also revealed thin slots on the walls which resembled mail box slots.

"A place for offerings," the Russian woman observed. "Most likely, the mummified remains of rats or snakes."

Morgana nodded. "Let's keep going."

Previous explorers into these catacombs had left the entrance open, so it was not difficult to find. The spiders which had made the long tunnel their home scurried away from the magical light. At the end of the tunnel, it opened up into a much larger cave. Hundreds of bats could clearly be heard. Looking up, they could see the bats on the ceiling. There were far too many to count.

"This way," Baba Yaga said.

There was another tunnel at the far end of the cave. "This is where we have to go," she explained. "We will not get very far in our human forms."

"_Forwierfe,_" the Russian witch incanted. He eyes glowed as she transformed into a reddish-furred cat. The backpack shrank along with her, so that it fit on her feline frame.

Morgana cast the same spell and transformed into a black cat. Then she followed the Russian witch into the mysterious tunnel.

* * *

Note: I was inspired by "The Lost Caves of Giza" for the last scene, in case you were wondering. I was searching for info on pyramids and it seemed like a great secret, ancient hiding spot. The explorers did not get very far into the tunnel because 1. the air was thin and 2. they thought some wild animals were living there, so I'm just going to have to use my imagination for what lies ahead.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Merlin awoke to the sound of water dripping. He'd fallen asleep at some point. Wherever he was, there was a leaky faucet. He felt in his pocket for his cell phone. His captors must have searched him, for it was not there. Sighing, he reached with his hand into the water bucket and took a sip. There were no signs that anyone was in the room with him, but surely they were not leaving him unguarded. He did have a reputation, after all.

A figure wearing a long, black, hooded robe opened a door on the other side of the room. Light came streaming in. Merlin blinked a few times. "Who are you?" he asked.

"I will ask the questions," said the man in a raspy voice.

"And why should I answer?"

"Oh, I think you will. You see, I may not look it, but I am at least as old as you are."

"That would be a good trick. I'm pretty old," Merlin said.

"For a human, yes. I'm a dragon."

Merlin wondered if he was, indeed, human."You're a dragon," he pointed out. "I'm a Dragonlord. What's to stop me from commanding you to open this cage?"

The hooded figure laughed. "Go ahead and try."

Merlin blinked, then began to speak in ancient Greek. The cage bars began to glow bright red while the warlock continued his spell. Suddenly, a burst of energy exploded from the cage wall and hit him. He cried out and collapsed onto the cold metal floor.

"See? This cage prevents magic from working. It is an enchantment we discovered ourselves, after centuries of research. While you were sleeping in that ice cave, the magical world has progressed."

The warlock sat up, rubbing his aching head. "Some progress. The rest of the world didn't even know about magic until I got here."

"Yes. Interesting, that. You've actually made our jobs much easier, since we no longer have to sneak around in the middle of the dark to get the supplies we need, or order them from obscure web sites and pay huge amounts in shipping fees. So for that, I thank you. However, you have stumbled into things that you were not supposed to."

"Funny, I have rather a habit of doing that."

"Indeed," commented the dragon dryly. "And so I must keep you imprisoned here, at least for now, until our plans have reached a state of progress that even you cannot stop them."

"Is that why you're here?"

"Not really. You do require food, don't you?"

Merlin nodded.

The dragon muttered something under his breath and there was a flash of light. Then a bowl of oatmeal appeared in the cage beside the bucket of water.

"Eat," said the dragon. "We need you alive."

"Why?"

"The answer will come in time."

Merlin sighed. "How much time?"

"You will find out when you need to, not before. Eat."

The warlock took the bowl of oatmeal and tried a bite. It didn't appear to be drugged or enchanted.

The dragon nodded. "Someone will be back for you later."

"Why?"

"You'll see." The hooded figure turned and walked away. Merlin saw the door open and close.

The lack of answers was extremely frustrating. Why were dragons and sorcerers working together? Why did they need him? What were they planning? Merlin hoped that Arthur had gotten a phone call from his mother and was coming to rescue him. It was going to be a long few days if he had to stay in this cage and eat nothing but oatmeal.

* * *

Meanwhile, two cats, one with red fur and one with black, crept along a dark, cold, and lengthy tunnel that gradually grew narrower. Finally, they reached the point at which they wouldn't have been able to continue in their human forms.

"Now you see?" said Baba Yaga, in her red feline form.

"Yes," Morgana replied.

Two pairs of yellow cat eyes peered into the darkness. Their heightened animal senses picked up the sound of something slithering up ahead.

"Snakes," Baba Yaga said.

The black cat nodded.

As they approached, Morgana saw it. It wasn't a small snake, either. This was one of the deadliest of all snakes – a cobra. It hissed angrily as the felines entered its territory. The red cat's eyes glowed golden and the snake was flung hard against the wall. There was a crack as its spine snapped. Morgana stepped over it warily, trying to avoid getting the snake's blood on her furry black paws.

"Come on," said Baba Yaga.

The two cats were eventually forced to crawl on their bellies. Then, as they reached the end of the tunnel, the red cat hissed. Below the drop off point, snakes hissed in a pit.

"A trap," Morgana noted.

"Indeed. We can get past this, but we will need to shape shift again. Follow my lead."

The red cat's eyes turned golden. She muttered something in a language that Morgana did not recognize. There was a ripple in the air around her, and then the red cat turned into a raven. Morgana cast the same spell. The black cat also transformed into a raven. The two ravens fluttered high above the serpents, being careful to avoid the many stalactites hanging from the ceiling of the small cave.

The next tunnel lay ahead.

* * *

Gwaine and Percival knocked on the door of Merlin's home. Percival was carrying a brown leather bag. It was Balinor who answered.

"Hello?"

"Hi. You probably don't remember us," Gwaine said. "We were knights back in the day."

"If you're looking for Merlin, he's not here. My wife is out shopping. She should be back soon. Would you care for some tea?"

"Sure," Percival replied.

They exchanged glances and followed Balinor into the home. It was modest. There wasn't much in the way of décor except for a few photographs on the walls and some daffodils in a white vase on the kitchen table.

"Whoever took Merlin had to have powerful magic. He would have gotten away from anyone else," Balinor said as he poured and handed them cups of tea.

Gwaine nodded and took a sip of tea. "Other than Morgana and Morgause, did he have any enemies?"

"There must have been some magical folks who didn't like the fact that he returned to us. Can't say that I know them specifically, though."

"I wish we had more to go on," Percival said.

"He was taken from out back," Balinor replied. "You're welcome to look around and see if you find anything the other cops missed."

The two former knights exchanged glances and set their tea cups down. "That's a good idea," Percival said. "Come on."

The back yard was fairly small, but Hunith had a flower garden. It had been trampled by whomever had abducted Merlin. Gwaine approached carefully, looking for anything between the flowers. Meanwhile, Percival was investigating the fence's gate.

"They picked the lock," he said. He set his bag down, took some equipment out of it, and dusted for fingerprints. "Nothing," he sighed.

There, between rows of daffodils, Gwaine saw something glinting in the dirt. "I found something."

Percival grabbed the bag and came over to take a look. "Looks like a needle of some kind."

"They must have drugged him," Gwaine said.

Percival nodded. "That would explain why he couldn't cast a spell to get away." Reaching down with a pair of tweezers, he picked up the needle and put it into an evidence bag. "I'm going to have this analyzed."

"We need to find out where he is. There must be some magical means of figuring out where he's gone."

"Let's go talk to Kilgharrah. If anyone can help us, he can."

The two went back into the house. "Found this," Percival said, holding up the bag.

"That's not good," Balinor replied.

"I can see if I can get anything off of it. In the meantime, we're going to try talking to the dragons. They might be able to figure something out."

He nodded. "Good luck."

"Thanks."

* * *

The Dragon's Roost was not as packed as usual. It was early spring, and in-between busy tourist seasons.

"Hello," said a slender blonde woman with blue eyes. Her hair was so pale that it was nearly white. She wore a tavern wench's costume that was green with a white blouse. "What can I get you?"

"Hello, Astraia," said Gwaine. "Actually, we need to talk to your father."

"Ah. He is in his office. Follow me."

They followed her towards the back of the room, where a plain wooden door opened up into an office. The furniture was antique and it was lit by a red Tiffany lamp. Kilgharrah looked up from the computer.

"This is about Merlin, is it not?"

"Yes," Percival said. "We are searching for him."

"As am I," the dragon replied. "My scrying spells have not been able to find him. Wherever he is, they have powerful magic indeed."

"If we take you back to the scene of the crime, would you be able to do anything?"

"Possibly."

"Then let's go," Gwaine said.

"Astraia, dear, you will be all right while I am away?"

"Of course, father."

The three got back into Percival's police car and headed back to Merlin's house. By this time, Hunith was home.

"Hello," Percival said as Merlin's mother opened the door. "Kilgharrah's going to take a look around outside, all right?"

She nodded.

They headed through the house to the back door. Kilgharrah muttered some things in the dragon tongue. In a green shimmer, footprints appeared that had been hidden before, probably by magic.

"Well, that's something," Gwaine said.

Following the trail of footprints led to the street, predictably.

"What now?" he asked.

"I might be able to use a scrying technique to find the vehicle they used," Kilgharrah answered.

Percival's eyebrows raised. "Can only dragons do this?"

"No, there are druids who know this spell."

"I think the police department might have to consider hiring a few."

From his pocket, Kilgharrah took out a clear flat crystal. It was in the shape of a disk. He cast a spell in the draconic language, and a wave of gold rippled across the crystal disk. The image of a silver Mercedes Benz SLR McLaren appeared.

"Whoever abducted him has expensive taste," Gwaine noted.

"Yes," Kilgharrah agreed. "Look, here is the license plate."

Percival jotted it down onto a notepad. "That will work. Thank you."

"When you find him, let me know. I have a suspicion who did this, but where they are, I do not know."

"Who?" Percival asked.

"There is a group of rogue sorcerers and dragons. They call themselves the Council of Astraeus. They do not think we know about them, but we do. We have spies in their midst. However, it is very dangerous for our spies if they get caught. You see, among other things, the Council of Astraeus believes in doing things the ancient way, which the Druidic Council has forbidden."

"Which means?"

"Blood sacrifices to the old Gods, human and otherwise."

"Ugh," Gwaine remarked. "Wait, you don't think..."

Percival's skin paled. "I hope not. Come on, we have to go back to the station so I can look up this plate number. Merlin might not have much time left."

"Thanks, Kilgharrah," Gwaine said. "Do you want us to drop you off at the tavern?"

"No, you cannot afford to waste time. But call me when you find him." He muttered a few words and disappeared in a flash of green light.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

The tunnel that Morgana and Baba Yaga had been creeping through for hours finally opened up into a very large cavern. Hundreds of bats could be heard throughout it. This was not just a cave, but a crypt. There were several large sarcophagi in the center of it. The largest sarcophagus was decorated with carvings of birds.

"That's it," Baba Yaga said, transforming herself into her human form. "The tomb of Hermes."

Morgana did the same. "What is in the tomb?"

"What we need," the Russian witch responded. "There is an emerald tablet buried within, as well as the Gem of Annihilation, the last jewel we need to form the Sphere of Titans. The Gem is within the tablet itself."

"All right," Morgana answered. "Then we should open the tomb."

"Yes," Baba Yaga agreed. "But it will not be easy. There are supposed to be guardians, which we must face."

"Let us get on with it."

The red-haired witch approached the middle sarcophagus and muttered some words under her breath. It was then that Morgana realized the language she spoke was not any human language.

"You speak the Draconic tongue," Morgana noted.

"Indeed," Baba Yaga responded. "I was wondering when you were going to pick up on that. You see, this human form is but another disguise."

Morgana gasped. "You're a dragon."

"Yes," she answered. "An ancient one. My name has changed throughout the centuries, but the one which I have gained the most reputation with is Baba Yaga."

"That's not your true name, is it?"

"No. That is far older, and I do not give it out."

"Very wise," Morgana replied. "However, you do realize that a Dragonlord does not need your name to use his magic?"

"Yes," Baba Yaga replied.

She continued to mutter in the Draconic tongue. The air around them shimmered with gold and red flecks. Finally, the top on the sarcophagus in the center slid off of its own accord and crashed to the ground. As it did, the other two sarcophagi tops slid off as well. The sound of moaning and the creaking of bones could be heard. Then two mummies rose in the darkness.

* * *

Meanwhile, Percival sat at a computer at the police station in London. Gwaine sat on an office chair next to him. Someone had given them donuts and coffee. The search Percival had been running on the plate finally popped up with registration information.

"All right," he said. "Interesting. This is an embassy car."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." He clicked on the computer screen to bring up Mr. Sato's photo and hotel location. "It is currently being used by the Japanese ambassador, in fact." Percival sighed. "That's not good. If Japan doesn't waive the diplomatic immunity, we can't prosecute."

Gwaine nodded. "I say we pay the embassy a visit and question him medieval style."

"I've got a better idea," Percival said. He picked up the phone and dialed.

Kilgharrah's daughter answered. "Dragon's Roost, how may I help you?"

"It's me. Is your father around?"

"Yes. Just a minute." Traditional Irish folk music played in the background as the phone was put on hold.

"Percival?" the dragon asked.

"We know where to start looking," he replied. "The Japanese embassy."

"On my way," the dragon replied. "Meet me outside there."

"All right," Percival said and hung up the phone. He looked at Gwaine. "I hope we're not going to be too late."

* * *

Morgana and Baba Yaga faced the two mummies. The undead spirits' eyes glowed like hot lava. They roared, taking a swing at the two women. Morgana blasted hers with a fire spell, which only made it angrier. The mummy roared back and struck at her with some sort of magical curse. She was blinded by a whirlwind of dust.

The red-haired witch struck at hers with a spell that made use of the bats near the ceiling. Summoning dozens of them at once, she magically flung them at the mummy to confuse it. The creature groaned as it flailed against the bats. Then it struck out at them, casting some sort of insect spell. Thousands of tiny insects flew around the bats, distracting them. Some of the bats crashed to the ground, and the insects swarmed around them. Soon there was nothing remaining of the bats save their bones.

Morgana dispelled the dust devil that was plaguing her and flung a lightning bolt at the mummy. That actually seemed to damage it; some of the bandages unraveled, showing nothing but pure darkness underneath. The magic holding the mummies together needed to be undone. But how?

"Enough of this," Baba Yaga shouted as some of the insects flew toward her. "Now you will see my true form!"

The air around her shimmered in waves. Soon, there was not a woman, but a full-sized black dragon. She glared at her mummy, opened her mouth, and breathed golden flames onto it. The mummy took one step forward and swung a bandaged fist in a last vain attempt to damage her. The dragon laughed as the mummy crumbled into dust.

Morgana struck her mummy again with another lightning bolt. More of the bandages unraveled. It glared at her with blazing eyes.

"The emerald tablet was not meant for the likes of you," the mummy hissed in a voice of dust and sand.

"Too bad," she replied and blasted it again.

The mummy's bandages disintegrated into a heap of ashes on the cavern floor. Only smoke remained, trailing up from them. Then the witch looked into the sarcophagus of Hermes, the messenger of the Gods. There were two things in it besides the mummified remains. One was a winged golden staff, and the other was the emerald tablet. It was not literally made of emerald, as Morgana saw when she lifted it up. That was a misnomer. It was green, true, but it was actually made of Amazonite. There was a black jewel near the bottom of the tablet.

Morgana put the tablet down on the ground and cast a spell. "Ábirste," she commanded.

The tablet appeared to glow with a golden light from the inside out. Cracks formed at the center of it and then spread out like a spider's web. The tablet shattered into tiny fragments, leaving the black jewel on the floor. She reached down to pick it up.

"Excellent," the dragon said. "We should be going."

"Wait," Morgana replied and picked up the golden staff. "If this really is the staff of Hermes, it holds great power. I will not leave it behind."

"As you wish," the dragon said. "Come. We need to go to Russia now and get the phoenix. She is the last component of the ritual. I know where she is staying. I have scryed her location."

Morgana nodded and stepped closer to the dragon. As Baba Yaga took her human form once more, the witch wondered what it would be like to finally be rid of Merlin.

* * *

Mr. Sato looked up from his desk as his assistant, sweating profusely, opened the door. With him were Kilgharrah, Percival, and Gwaine.

The assistant bowed. "My humble apologies, Sato-San, but they insisted."

"It is all right, Tanaka-San. I am honored to receive these particular guests."

"Arigatou gozaimasu," the assistant replied and left, bowing once more.

"How may I help you?" Mr. Sato asked once the door was closed.

Percival held up his badge. Then he held up the photograph of the car which he had printed off at work before leaving. "Are you familiar with this vehicle?"

"Yes, that is the one I am using. Why do you ask, Officer?"

"We have good reason to believe that a friend of ours was abducted by someone driving it. You have heard of Merlin?"

"The wizard? Yes. He is quite famous. You're saying he was abducted? But who would be foolish enough to do such a thing? Surely he is powerful enough to escape quickly."

"Not if his captor drugged him first," Percival replied. "The needle we found at the crime scene is still undergoing tests. It would have to be a very strong drug in order to prevent Merlin from using his magic. So I must ask, who was driving your car two days ago?"

Mr. Sato looked surprised. "My assistant borrowed it to run some errands for me. You can find the record in the embassy computers if you check."

"Thanks, I will. May we talk to your assistant?"

"Of course," Mr. Sato replied.

Kilgharrah's eyes had been narrowed during this entire conversation. "Wait a moment," he said.

"What is it?" Percival asked.

The dragon glared at Mr. Sato. "You are hiding something. I can tell."

"Sorry?"

Kilgharrah began to chant in the Draconic language. A green wave rippled across Mr. Sato's form. There in the office, they could all see the ambassador's visage change into one more scaly.

"You are one of my people. What are you doing here?"

"Indeed I am," Mr. Sato said. "I work for peace so that laws beneficial to the magical community may be passed in different countries. My country's government is not aware of this, however. My assistant knows nothing of it."

"What does the Council of Astraeus mean to you?"

A flicker passed across Mr. Sato's face as the green glow faded. "I have heard of the council, of course. I do not condone it."

Kilgharrah did not look pleased. "I think you are lying. You had your assistant drive your car so that you could not be placed under suspicion. Where did you have your assistant go?"

A deep growl came from Mr. Sato's throat. This was not his human voice. "None of your business!"

"Merlin is my business," Kilgharrah responded. "He has been my business for over a thousand years. I will ask you again, where did your assistant take him?"

Mr. Sato roared in full dragon fury. The walls shook with the force of the sound. "You will never find him! I've made sure of that."

The door burst open as embassy security guards ran in with tasers drawn.

"It's all right," Kilgharrah replied calmly. "Mr. Sato here was just telling us where he had his assistant take Merlin."

"Never," he thundered.

The security guards blanched.

Percival drew his gun from his holster and held up his badge yet again. "Mr. Sato, I am arresting you for False Imprisonment. You don't have to say anything but it may harm your defense if you do not mention, when questioned, something you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be taken down and given in evidence."

With that, Mr. Sato roared yet again and began to rapidly cast a spell. The green light associated with teleportation spells appeared in the room. Kilgharrah recognized it and cast a counter-spell. A blue glow washed over the green. Mr. Sato glared as he was unable to teleport away.

"I think you will find that he will be unable to escape, at least for the time being. It is best if you let my people deal with him," Kilgharrah said.

Percival nodded. "Fine by me. But we still need to find Merlin."

"I believe the assistant should be able to answer those questions," Kilgharrah said. "I will speak with you later." He cast a spell. Glowing green chains appeared around Mr. Sato's arms and ankles. "He must be taken to the Druidic Council now."

With a green flash of light, the dragons vanished.

The assistant happened to be cowering behind a desk.

"Where is Merlin?" Gwaine demanded, leaning over the desk. "Perhaps you've heard of me. I was Sir Gwaine, formerly of the Round Table. I still remember a few interrogation tricks or two."

The assistant turned quite pale. "Please, I didn't have a choice."

"Everyone has choices. Sometimes you make good ones, and sometimes you make bad ones. Working with Mr. Sato was a bad choice."

"I see that now."

"Where did you take Merlin? Tell me, or I'll have one of the magical types teleport me to New York, and I'll bring Arthur back with his sword. He still has it, you know. Arthur also has a temper when it comes to people hurting his friends."

"All right! I'll show you. But we'll need to drive there," the assistant said.

Percival leaned in from the other side. "Great. Take us there, now. You will ride in our car."

The trembling assistant stood up. "All right. Just don't hurt me."

* * *

In a hotel room in Russia, Endellion was watching the magic box the maid had called a TV. It was showing the news, and a woman with a British accent was on. "In other news, Merlin has still not been found. He has been missing for over forty-eight hours. The police say they have a lead and time is of the essence."

There was a knock on her door. "Room service," a female voice said. The voice had a British accent as well.

Puzzled, the red-haired young woman went to open the door to see Morgana and Baba Yaga standing there. Morgana was smiling.

"I didn't order any room service."

"Oh, that's quite all right," Baba Yaga replied. "But you will be coming with us."

Before Endellion could use her magic, Morgana cast a rather powerful sleep spell. The Russian witch caught the phoenix as she collapsed.

"Now we have everything we need," Baba Yaga said. "Soon, there will be no one to stop us. The Council of Astraeus will rule the world, and the time of the druids will be over."

The two women cackled as they vanished in a flash of green light.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"Left here," Mr. Tanaka said. "Then there will be an underground garage on the right."

Percival nodded as he turned. He only hoped that they would get there in time to save Merlin. The police car pulled into an alleyway and drove through the entrance to the parking garage. A security guard flagged him down. Percival held up his badge. "I'm here on official police business."

The guard nodded. "Go ahead."

"Thanks."

For all intents and purposes, this appeared to be a perfectly normal parking garage. There was a toll booth. Cars lined the parking ramp all the way around.

"If we park up here, we'll draw less attention," Mr. Tanaka said. "The entrance is not open to the public and is guarded."

"I have a badge," Percival reminded him. "And a gun."

"True, but they'll have magic."

"What do you suggest?"

"You let us in," Gwaine said. "They think you're working with them still, right?"

"Yeah, but Perc is a police officer."

"Tell them he's on their side and was hired for added security."

"It could work," Percival said.

"All right," Mr. Tanaka replied. "We'll try it. I have an idea of where they're holding your wizard."

"Warlock," Percival and Gwaine responded at the same time.

The police car was parked in a corner. The three got out and walked quickly down the ramp. It was several floors before they finally arrived at an unmarked beige door that blended in nearly perfectly with the wall. If they weren't looking for it, the door would have been easy to miss.

"The guards will be right inside," Mr. Tanaka explained. "Let me knock first."

The Japanese man approached and knocked on the door. It opened slowly.

"Ah, Mr. Tanaka. So good of you to join us. What's this?" the guard asked, looking around.

"They are allies," Mr. Tanaka answered. "Extra security personnel. One of them is a trained police officer. Mr. Sato thought they might be needed tonight with our proceedings."

"That is good. You may enter. Please, follow me."

The guard ushered them both through the hallway, which was dimly lit by one light in the ceiling that flickered. Only one of three bulbs in the light remained. Through the dingy corridor, they were led to a dark room. The guard flicked on a light switch and there, Percival could see Merlin locked in a cage of some sort.

The warlock sat up at the noise. He gave no sign of recognition.

"We are nearly ready to begin the ritual," said the guard. "We are only waiting for..."

There was a sudden green flash of light in the room as Morgana and Baba Yaga appeared, along with the sleeping Endellion in tow. Morgana gasped as she saw them.

"What are you two doing here?"

"Long time no see, Morgana," Gwaine said, grinning.

The guard raised his hand to activate a beeper alarm that he carried in his pocket, but Gwaine quickly knocked him out cold. As the guard fell, he dropped his taser, which the former knight picked up. It was better than nothing, although he wished for at least a knife.

"Look out," Merlin shouted as Baba Yaga began to cast a spell in the draconic language.

Percival took out his gun and aimed at her. He fired.

"Fool! Do you think mere bullets can damage me?" Lightning danced on the Russian witch's fingertips.

The bullet struck her in the chest. She laughed and tossed a ball of lightning at him. He hit the ground.

"What the..."

"She's a dragon," Merlin exclaimed. "You have to get me out of here."

"How, mate?" Gwaine asked as Morgana lobbed an energy blast at him. He pressed himself flat against the wall to dodge it. The blast hit the adjacent wall and created a large burnt hole.

The warlock looked at the red-haired young woman who was currently sound asleep on the floor. He sensed strong magic coming from her, even stronger than that of the dragon. Could it be? He looked at her with magical sight. Her aura was the color of flames, and even looked like flames licking the air.

"Wake up the girl," he shouted. "She's the phoenix!"

"You will not stop us," Morgana declared, one hand on the staff of Hermes. In her other hand, she held a black gem.

"We must perform the ritual now," Baba Yaga exclaimed. "Give me the gem!"

Percival slowly crept towards the girl on the floor behind the witches, being careful to not make a sound. Morgana handed the jewel over. The Russian witch held the black gem, the dark blue gem, and the purple gem up in her hand. She began to chant in the draconic language again.

Meanwhile, Gwaine realized what Percival was doing and made as much a distraction of himself as he could.

"For Camelot," he yelled, charging Morgana with the taser.

As Morgana cast a spell at him, Percival shook the girl gently. Endellion's eyes remained shut, so he shook her again. Finally, the girl blinked and looked at him. Percival put his finger to his lips and shook his head as Gwaine dodged another energy blast.

The phoenix and Percival crept towards the wall. As they did, the jewels in Baba Yaga's hand formed a shimmering sphere with black, blue, and purple swirls. Tiny gold flecks in it glittered in the dim light.

"Now that we have the Sphere of Titans, you will not be able to defeat us," Morgana shouted.

Suddenly, the air grew immensely hot, as a jet of flames was aimed at Baba Yaga.

"No," she roared in her dragon's voice. Quickly, she cast a shield spell so the flames would not hurt her. "What's this? You cannot be awake!"

"Oh, but I am," the phoenix replied, glaring with eyes like rubies. "Release Merlin, or I will burn you."

"Perhaps your mother's memories did not include very many dragons," Baba Yaga said, returning the glare. "It takes a lot of fire to harm us."

Endellion switched to her fire form then, but a smaller version. Her true form would take up much of the room. "Well, then it is a good thing I have a lot of fire."

Baba Yaga handed the sphere to Morgana. "Finish the ritual. I will take care of her."

"As you wish." Morgana started to chant as Baba Yaga threw chain lightning at the phoenix. She rose into the air, and the two former knights ducked to avoid the spell's effects. Some of the lightning touched the bars of Merlin's cage. It glowed red as an anti-magic shield was formed around it.

Endellion lobbed a fire ball at the dragon, who cackled as she absorbed it. Morgana kept on chanting. Gwaine ran at her with the taser, but she telekinetically threw him against the wall. He dropped the taser as he lost consciousness.

Percival raised his gun. However, his target was not Morgana or Baba Yaga. He fired and shot the lock on the cage. It hit and swung open.

"Thanks," Merlin said, stepping outside.

"No problem," Percival replied.

"Astrice," the warlock shouted.

A red beam of energy shot out of his hand and struck the sphere that Morgana held. The witch cursed as it glowed bright red and became to hot to hold. She dropped it, but it did not break. Instead, it rolled towards the far wall and stopped when it hit the cement.

"You will pay for that," Morgana vowed.

Enraged, Baba Yaga sent a blast of ice toward the phoenix. "You will not defeat me!"

"There is something you do not realize, Pyralis."

"What?" the dragon shrieked. "How do you know my name?" she thundered.

"You have, perhaps, forgotten that you knew my mother. She fought you all those centuries ago."

Baba Yaga glared at the phoenix. "Who was she?"

"Her name was Halia. She fought you in the Siege of the Shadowlands."

That had been over two millennia ago. Unrecorded in any history book save those kept by the magical community, the Siege of the Shadowlands took place against the backdrop of ancient Europe. Back then, there were few cities, just small villages, larger villages, and castles.

The Shadowlands were a mystical land in-between the veils. The sidhe and humans had been at war for centuries, and the humans had chased the fae folk back into their native Shadowlands. However, not content to stay in their lands, the humans had ventured further. The sidhe had lashed out, causing a few minor skirmishes that did actually get recorded in history books. But, of course, there was no mention of magic since the humans won.

It had been a huge battle in the realm of the sidhe. The dragonlords had used their dragons against the sidhe magic, but the sidhe had one thing more powerful: a platoon of phoenix. You see, one phoenix was more powerful than half a dozen dragons, and so the humans did not stand much of a chance. The sidhe chased the humans out and magically sealed the border to the Shadowlands. It remained closed to this day.

The dragon roared then, but Merlin used his dragonlord magic against her. He shouted in the ancient language, commanding her to stop.

"No," Baba Yaga screeched.

Merlin cast another spell. Roots rose up from the floor and entangled themselves around her legs. Morgana made a run for the orb, but Percival raised his gun again and shot her, this time in the leg.

"Will you never learn?" the former knight asked.

She tripped and fell. As she did, her fingers brushed across the orb and it rolled away from her. "I will not be captured by the likes of you," Morgana sneered. She grabbed the golden staff that she had dropped, cast the teleportation spell, and vanished in a flash of green light.

"Blast," Merlin said as she teleported out.

"I'm sure we'll have another opportunity to catch her," Percival replied.

"I will take Baba Yaga to the Druidic council. Take the phoenix to my house. She needs a place to stay for the time being."

He nodded. The warlock chanted the teleportation spell and vanished with the dragon.

"Why did you shoot to wound? She would not have given you the same chance," Endellion asked, as she regained her human form.

"Just because I'm no longer a knight doesn't mean that I don't have honor. Besides, capturing an enemy alive is preferable. That way, they can be questioned."

He helped Gwaine get back to his feet.

"Ugh," the former knight said, rubbing the back of his head.

"Come on," said Percival. "My car's outside."

Mr. Tanaka had left, presumably while the battle was still going on. There were no guards left in the hallway. When they got to the parking garage, Gwaine held the door open for Endellion.

"It's all right," he said as she hesitated. "It's just a car. It won't bite."

"I've seen cars from a distance," she replied.

"Well, now you get to ride in one."

As Percival drove the car out of the garage, Endellion wondered just what the future had in store for her.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Morgana appeared with a flash of green light in her New York apartment, still holding the staff of Hermes. She limped over to the couch and sat down, and laid the staff on the floor. Her leg was bleeding badly.

"Þurhhæle licsar min," she chanted.

There was a brilliant flash of light, and then an intense wave of heat. This was a very old healing spell, but it was reliable. It cauterized the wound. She was down, but not out. Perhaps the staff would bring her new power.

* * *

The Druidic Council meeting had been convened. The nine elders, three of whom were human, three of whom were dryads, and three of whom were dragons, faced Baba Yaga, who stood apart from them. She was surrounded by various magical sigils to prevent her from teleporting out. The room was lit solely by the magical light orbs cast by the elders, all of which were white and hovering around the table in front of their respective caster.

"Now we vote," said Elder Rowanleaf. "Red is guilty. Green is not guilty. We have all seen the evidence and heard the testimony of Merlin, as well as Kilgharrah."

One by one, the hues of the magical lights changed from white to red. It was unanimous.

"Very well," said Elder Rowanleaf. "Pyralis, also known as Baba Yaga, you have been found guilty. Our punishment is imprisonment for the rest of your natural life, however long that may be. Certainly, it has already been quite long. To that end, we have found through our research the original spell Nimueh used to trap Merlin. You will remain alive but unconscious until your life force is exhausted."

"If Merlin broke the spell, so can I," the dragon pointed out.

"We have thought of that. It seemed that his circumstances were quite special. We have taken precautions against that happening with you."

"I will find a way," Baba Yaga vowed as the ground she was standing on turned out to be a lift.

It went down very, very far. She cast a teleportation spell, but the sigils glowed blue and cancelled it out.

When the lift reached its final destination, Baba Yaga was encased in ice. She felt overwhelmingly cold as she fell asleep. The sigils remained to hold her there magically. Clearly, there was no getting out for her, at least not anytime soon.

* * *

Merlin finally arrived home to find his parents, Endellion, Percival, and Gwaine sitting at the table. They were talking over tea. It was late at night the day of his rescue. He'd had to make an official statement to the Druidic Council after dropping off the dragon and the Sphere of Titans. The council was keeping it safe and well-guarded. He was, needless to say, exhausted.

"Merlin! Thank goodness you're home," Hunith exclaimed, standing up to hug him.

He returned the hug. "Thanks, Mum."

Although she wasn't technically his mother, not in this lifetime, they had fallen back into old habits easily enough. He plopped down into a nearby chair.

"Would you like some tea, dear?"

"That would be fantastic."

It was the little things that one missed most after harrowing ordeals, and Merlin had certainly been through enough of those. He wondered what Arthur was doing – probably getting up in the morning for class, with the time difference. He never used to have to think about time differences. The modern world was certainly interesting.

* * *

Mordred approached the tent cautiously. The online advertisement had said "Want to learn real magic? Personal tutoring available – for a fee."

The tent was forest green and in a campground just outside the city limits of New York. Pine trees surrounded the area. The little tent was definitely an oddball, smack dab between an RV with Mississippi license plates and a trailer home. However, it seemed that whoever owned it was quite cozy. The land around the tent was quite tidy. There was a small campfire pit, obviously dug out. A white lawn chair sat beside it, with a dark green towel draped over it.

"Hello?" Mordred said.

A middle-aged woman stepped out of the tent. She wore a brown maxi skirt, an olive-colored T-shirt, and a necklace with brown wooden beads. Her hair was long and brown, and had natural feathers woven into it.

"Hello?"

"Hi. I uh, came about the online ad."

"Ah. I am Maggie. And you are?"

"Matt," he said, using his modern name.

"Matt," she replied. "Welcome to my humble abode. The fee is $50 a week. In case you are wondering, I am absolutely the real deal." She held out her hand, and a red rose grew from her palm. "I can teach you this, and much more. I specialize in healing."

"Are you a druid?"

"Yes."

He nodded and handed her the money. "I'm ready."

Maggie took the cash. "Excellent," she replied with a smile.

* * *

Meanwhile, Arthur was doing homework when he received a phone call from Merlin.

"Hey."

"Hey. How are you?"

"Fine."

"Good. What happened?"

Merlin told him everything. "Oh, and Morgana escaped with a staff," he finished.

"What kind of staff?"

"I'm not sure. It looked ancient. I didn't sense any dark magic from it. Maybe she wants to sell it?"

"I'll keep an eye out for any local antique staff sales," Arthur promised. "Where did she get it?"

"Probably wherever she found those gems for that magical orb."

"What happened to that thing?"

"She dropped the orb, so I took it after she teleported away. The Druidic Council has it now, and that's probably for the best. It's powerful magic, Arthur. I mean, we're talking legendary magic here."

"You have legendary magic," Arthur pointed out.

"Yeah, but that orb is way more powerful than I am. I'm glad it's not in Morgana's hands anymore."

"So you're home?"

"Yeah, I'm home, and I'm going back to the school tomorrow. Arthur, you should come back here."

"I have a couple years of college left, and so does Gwen."

"After college."

"Maybe."

"This is your home."

"New York is my home. I grew up here."

"Only in this life," Merlin pointed out. "It'll come back to you."

"That's kind of what I'm afraid of."

"What?"

"Merlin, I'm not that person anymore, in case you haven't noticed. I'm me now. I am John Jones, average American college student. My family is middle-class. My father is a librarian. My mother is a nurse. We are completely average people now, other than this past life stuff."

There was a long pause, and then a deep breath. "You will always be my Arthur, no matter what happens. No matter what century it is, no matter where in the world you are, you will always be King Arthur. And you are most certainly not average. You are exemplary."

"That's a lot to live up to."

"Yeah, but you can. You've done it before. I was there," Merlin replied.

"All right."

As he hung up the phone, Arthur wondered the future held.

* * *

The End


End file.
